#keyleth has possessed her

[andi-o-geyser]

marisha getting real-time flashbacks to Vox Machina instantly fucking up and having the plants turn on them when they were first in the feywild

[utilitycaster]

An ongoing theme, with regards to the gods (as opposed to Predathos and the Imperium) is that of free will. The gods are stringent in collecting on promises made, and the Betrayers will use initial consent as license to act freely, but it’s notable, in a campaign where nearly all the main player characters are shaped by entities that never once gave them a choice, the gods require an invitation. Except, worryingly, Predathos, a being of nigh-divine powers who does not seem bound by this limitation. And, of course, mortals can do as they will.

When Lolth overtakes Opal, the fact that Opal assumed both the crown, and the title of champion, willingly, is repeatedly mentioned, in DM narration and by Lolth herself. Lolth also mentions to Dorian, (perhaps untruthfully, though the events of EXU indicate this might be genuine), that she wished for him to become her champion instead - but he did not put on the crown, so she can’t have him. Obviously, Lolth takes many liberties with Opal once given entry, but she can only speak to people or act through someone who has permitted her. We see this too with Asmodeus: it is ultimately Zerxus’s choice not to walk away and face his death, but make good on his pact; some degree of initial consent is needed. K’nauth and Judicators are also both explicitly described as voluntary: once permission is given, they are bound, but this is no different than the contracts of warlocks and notably, with the gods, while we’ve seen them make deals under dire straits, we’ve never seen such unwitting participants in their pacts as Fjord with Uk’otoa or Laudna with Delilah among the gods. All entered in control of their faculties, to our knowledge, though not necessarily with the full knowledge of what it entailed.

The Prime Deities are differentiated from the Betrayers in that they continue to provide free will to their champions and their faithful. The Raven Queen accepts Vax’s trade of his life for Vex’s, given without any direct communication from her, but she quickly does begin to communicate clearly; when Vax communes with her in Duskmeadow, she tells him what she wishes, putting him much more at ease. Later, after his death, she gives him an option to either remain dead, or to have a little more time left with Keyleth, Vex, and the others of Vox Machina before he completes his task and returns to her, and he makes a choice. When Morrighan asks for guidance, the Raven Queen’s response is to ask “why are you fighting, and what are you fighting for?” and stresses that she wishes to lay out the exact terms before Morrighan agrees to anything. When Percy asks her what to do she, ironically enough for a goddess of fate, tells him he possesses the capacity to do great things of his own accord. All of Vox Machina’s divine favors come willingly, only after a conversation; the Wildmother first reaches out to Fjord before he decides to accept. And mortals have the capacity to resist even these promises; Opal is only partially successful but she does not give the Spider Queen two deaths and she does not leave alone. Fy’ra Rai finds herself able to go against Lolth’s wishes even when the Wildmother does not wish to intervene; it is her choice not to kill Opal but to go with her.

When mortals express doubt in the gods, it’s typically not their actions. It’s because they don’t think they meddle in the matters of mortals enough. As mentioned, Percy struggles with the open-ended nature of the Raven Queen’s advice. Essek, frequently considered an “anti-god” character is actually quite mild in his doubt and ultimately more frustrated at the clerics of the Kryn Dynasty than the Luxon itself (put a pin in that). Ludinus Da’leth states the gods should have prevented the Calamity, despite us knowing that the Prime Deities avoided intervention and that ultimately, while the Calamity had a number of causes, mortals (Vespin, Laerryn, much of the city of Avalir) were at the root. Ashton and Imogen’s frustrations with the gods have both ultimately been that they asked for assistance and did not receive it.

The extension of the Prime Deities’ belief in the free will of mortals is sufficiently strong that even during the Age of Arcanum, when many mortals rejected them, and when they did not require mortal intermediaries, they still chose to preserve it until the Calamity began. Each major action by the gods as a group is ultimately one to preserve themselves (the sealing of Predathos; the destruction of Aeor; the current campaign’s truce) or to preserve mortals (the Primes during the Schism and in creating the Divine Gate).

Contrast this with Delilah, who seizes control of Laudna and who is never stated to have asked permission for any of her actions. Compare to FCG, designed by Aeorians to lose control and kill. Compare to Chetney, bitten by a werewolf in the wilderness (and the others of the Gorgynei as well) - indeed, what control he has is the legacy of magic granted by the Raven Queen and by a nature spirit tied to the Wildmother. Contrast this now with Predathos, whose Ruidusborn had no say in this connection and indeed, many are motivated in service to Predathos with the goal of freeing themselves. Enforcers within the Kreveris Imperium refer to themselves as The Will, and Elder Barthie refers to those who oppose them as being made “pliable”. Chetney’s loss of control under Ruidus is deliberately triggered by the Weave Mind, with whom he made no deal.

If we (in my opinion, rightfully) reject any argument that denies the right of sentient entities to self-preservation, we are left with the following accusations of the gods: failing to stop wrongdoing by mortals (both in their name and unrelated); and acting in accordance with pre-existing agreements. The latter we can also reject; it is not perhaps kind of the gods to hold people to their contracts, but this is not unique to them and as discussed extensively above, they do require that, at least initially, the promise be made willingly.

The former, unfortunately, will not be stopped by destroying the gods. Ultimately, such people as Tuldus, Bor’Dor, and the people of Hearthdell were oppressed by their fellow mortals. In-world, we have seen zealotry in the name not just of the Prime Deities but that of countless lesser ones, notably Uk’otoa; if only the Prime and Betrayer gods are at stake, this simply creates a power vacuum to be filled by other entities vastly more powerful than mortals. On the other hand, should all power-granting entities be devoured, setting aside the upheaval this will cause in society, this leaves no shortage of room for oppression on the basis of race or political affiliation, both of which we’ve seen. The Tal’Dorei Campaign Setting’s original incarnation, prior to the further development of Wildemount for Campaign 2, even stated the Dwendalian Empire forbade all religion and was still an authoritarian one. Colonization is the end goal of the Weave Mind and indeed the motivation for killing the gods per Edmuda. It also is not unheard of on Exandria for reasons not attributed to religion, notably the settling of the Menagerie Coast by Marquesians, and Tal’Dorei (formerly Gwessar) by human settlers from Issylra. And, of course, as we know in our real world, you do not need provable deities for religion to develop nor for colonization and oppression. Mortals do these things in reality and Exandria, whether or not the gods exist, and destroying the gods in Exandria achieves no prevention, only carnage.

Returning, finally, to Essek: when we look at the major characters who are PCs or are aligned with them who have expressed frustration with the gods, the only one who has much of a case for being influenced by the actions of a deity is Percy, who is staunchly on the side against Predathos. One could split hairs and note that Vecna was not a deity at the time of the murder of Percy’s family, his own torture, and the destruction and occupation of Whitestone, but rather merely a power-hungry wizard extending his lifespan via unscrupulous means, but Percy’s own choices render this moot. Meanwhile, the gods simply did not alleviate Imogen and Ashton’s experiences, both of which were in part due to powers caused by entities the gods, in fact, failed to sufficiently destroy (Predathos and Ka’Mort specifically) and mostly perpetuated by mortals reacting to Imogen’s abilities or Ashton finding themself orphaned on the outskirts of a notoriously rough city and later, caught as the fall guy in a failed heist by a morally questionable wealthy collector.

It is my belief that Keyleth’s anger is, on some level, extended towards someone who can’t respond nor change and who she feels she cannot be angry at, and that is Vax. Vax made the deal and the Raven Queen collected; Vax decided to take the Raven Queen’s second offer. He was forced into neither, and as discussed later, he likely would have responded poorly to a True Resurrection attempt given his faith. Vax is dead because of Vecna, but neutralizing Vecna didn’t fix it. I think Dorian’s anger at Lolth meanwhile is valid, but it’s also something I’d imagine he feels he cannot direct towards Opal, even though her actions are a part of it. And I’m sure both Keyleth and Dorian blame themselves, to an extent, whether or not that is rightful. The gods make just as convenient a scapegoat for those hurt by mortals as they do an excuse for cruelty.  But I don’t think killing them will bring back Vax, and certainly not Cyrus. Much as Derrig and Will and four other Ashari lie permanently dead at the hands of Otohan Thull despite her demise, and Orym’s trauma remains, killing the gods will not undo what happened to Imogen or Ashton. And since their main crime is considered to be inaction, killing them does not end suffering (and, indeed, should we dig into the infrastructures of Exandrian society and cosmology, may very well drastically increase it). It merely confirms that no one will receive their favor rather than only some; a bringing everyone down to your misery rather than striving to elevate all. An apt, if slightly tongue-in-cheek comparison to the real world is the fact that the cause of student loan forgiveness has been hamstrung and neutered by people furious that, since they didn’t receive help, no one else should - it is a self-centered and retaliatory mentality to lash out so far in jealousy that one would willingly destroy the life of another with the goal of increasing universal suffering.

Sources:

Timestamps available upon request but here are the episodes I’m drawing from. Printed works include pages.

Lolth, Opal, and Dorian: see 3x92-93; see also EXU Prime episode 8, EXU Kymal episode 2 for Opal willingly accepting and EXU Prime episodes 5 and 7 for the Spider Queen trying to get Dorian to put on the circlet.

K’nauth: EXU Calamity episode 2

Asmodeus and Zerxus: EXU Calamity episode 4

Judicators: 3x43

The Raven Queen and Vax: notably 1x44 (initial deal), 1x57 (Duskmeadow communion), 1x103 (her offering him the choice to pass or to become a revenant). Percy is also in 1x57.

The Raven Queen and Morrighan: 3x93.

Vox Machina’s divine favors: 1x104-1x106

Fjord and the Wildmother: 2x65; powers granted in 2x76.

Fy’ra and the Wildmother: 3x93

Essek’s feelings: see the final portion of this excellent post from essektheyless

Ludinus on the gods: 3x45

For causes of the Calamity, see EXU Calamity in its entirety, but Vespin specifically is episode 4, many of Avalir’s actions (including ignoring the hall of prophecy) are episode 2, and Laerryn denying the Arboreal Calix needed energy and casting Blight are in episode 3).

Ashton on the gods: 3x65

Imogen on the gods: 3x79

See page 12 of The Explorer’s Guide to Wildemount regarding the Prime Deities’ choice not to enforce their will during the Age of Arcanum.

Sealing of Predathos: 3x43; destruction of Aeor: EGTW 121; Truce mentioned in 3x67 and has appeared in 3x89 (Vezoden) and 3x92-93 (The Wildmother and Lolth).

Schism: EGTW 12; Divine Gate EGTW 13-14.

Delilah seizing control: 3x23

FCG’s design: 3x32 and 3x45

Chetney and Gorgynei (history and control): 3x40-41

Weave Mind control of Chetney: 3x91

Goals of Ruidusborn: multiple but see 3x48 and 3x89, 3x92 for a strong example with Liliana.

Imperium practices: 3x84

Tuldus: 3x44. Bor’Dor: 3x63. Hearthdell: 3x60-61.

Actions of Uk’otoa: much of Campaign 2 but notably 2x98 and The Mighty Nein Reunited.

Original description of the Dwendalian Empire: Tal’Dorei Campaign Setting (not Reborn) page 99

Goals of the Weave Mind: 3x85

Colonization of the Menagerie Coast: EGTW 17 (largely a peaceful one); Colonization of Tal’Dorei: Tal’Dorei Campaign Setting Reborn page 18 (explicitly stated to be against the wishes of the elves; led in part to the rule of Drassig and Scattered War).

Percy and Vecna: Vecna ascends in 1x106; the events of the Whitestone Occupation begin prior to campaign 1. Percy is in multiple war councils against the Vanguard and notably appears in the plans for a distraction to allow Bells Hells to take the Bloody Bridge in 3x81.

Imogen and Predathos: the revelation that Predathos may be within exaltants comes in 3x92; 3x83 and 3x87 both have involuntary experiences due to Predathos and see Liliana’s arguments in 3x48 as well as Imogen’s discussion of Gelvaan.

Ashton and Ka’Mort: emotional fallout most notably in 3x78; Evontra’vir’s description of what happened with the shard in 3x74. Memories of the Hexum Manor heist can be seen in 3x35.

[demigoddessqueens]

Babe I'm back with some more yandere requests and have more coming. Yandere vox machina headcanons where there darling gets kidnapped. They literally look away for like 5 seconds and they are just gone, like they were just yoinked

Yahooo!!!! 🙌💞🤲💕 gimme that goodness!! 🫨

Masterlist 11

Keyleth

Her worries and concerns are already heightened as is, but the anger and frustration cracks through to search for you. If this after the Aramente/Voice of the Tempest, no continent is safe in the search for you

Scanlan

He can have a vengeful side if need be, and you being taken away so swiftly warrants that. The gnome bard is very much a “punch first, ask questions later” type when it comes to you missing

Vex’ahlia

It was painstakingly obvious how much you meant to her, and with you kidnapped, the possessiveness has only grown. Too many good things have slipped away or almost slipped away from her, but she won’t let you be another one. It’s not a matter of if, but when she ultimately finds you.

Grog

All he can feel is the rage boiling through his veins at your disappearance. The others, especially Pike, are barely hanging onto him by a thread. The sooner you’re found, the better

Pike

A foolish choice on the kidnapper’s part to kidnap you from her, especially since she is a cleric for a Goddess of divine retribution! If you’re ever found, there’s no way Pike is letting you out of her sight(s)

Percy

“Soul is forfeit” dialed up all the way to a x10000! His anger and frustration is the entire mask for his overwhelming despair to where you are. Who dares to take you from him? How can he save this world if you’re not in it?

Vax’ildan

Oooh you know he’s abusing the heck out of that Champion privilege! Someone dumb enough thought to hurt the significant other of a literal death demigod?? He’d rather sooner see you safe before exacting retribution

[gunpowderraven]

critical role: by someone that hasn’t seen any of it

hi so we recently got into dimension 20 and our friends have been tugging us towards critical role for a very long time at this point but we still haven’t watched any of it nor do we know all that much about anything that actually happens in it. however we do intend to actually start watching soon so we decided it was the perfect opportunity to make one of those ‘all the things i know about this thing i haven’t watched’ posts, show it to our critrole friends, and then actually get into critrole and be able to look back and laugh about it later

also the images are all sourced via friend so this is all one hundred percent no wiki no google knowledge, just from tumblr and discord convos and stuff. and some cast compilation videos that were very funny

update: we are now watching cr3! liveblog tag for silly lb -> #cr3 lb

vox machina

from left to right:

- i have literally no idea who the two halflings are. i’ve never seen them before in my life. what. uh. paladin and bard? im literally just guessing. who plays these characters. what

- grog? grug? this is travis’ pc maybe. also hypothesizing hes a half-orc barbarian or something similar? ive seen like one clip of him

- percival frederick von something something de rolo i think there’s a iii in his name as well, his name is long and very german but he does not have a german accent. or a french one. at separate times i have thought this character was german and french and then i heard him talk and was like. What. anyway i know he’s taliesin’s pc and he invented guns and is also possessed sometimes by big bird demon, and he has a nifty plague doctor mask. also tragic backstory. his entire family is dead i think. no mercy percy! he has a thing with vex? also his hair did a wilbur. the gay people on tumblr love this twink. i also think i love this twink

- vax’ildan! i think i may have actually spelled that right! half-elf? vex is his twin? and he’s... liam’s pc i think. yeah that’s it. he gives me angsty boy energy tho. not as much as percy but this boy has seen some shit. also he might be a rogue or a ranger who even knows. he looks like gay jon snow

- vex’ahlia which i definitely didn’t spell right. i think the next one is marisha’s pc so this one is... uh... laura? i think she’s the ranger actually. i think she has a bear. not like a gay bear like an actual animal bear. though it could be gay too i dunno. she has a think with percy. or everyone wants her to have a thing with percy. i genuinely can’t tell. anyway get that traumatized twink girl

- keyleth... marisha’s pc. some kind of spellcaster? maybe sorcerer? wild magic? she Also has a thing with percy maybe. or vex. or both. who even knows. everyone wants that twink. one time she threw herself off a cliff and turned into a goldfish and almost died and it was hilarious

anything else i know about this:

- there are evil bitches called the briarwoods and they might be vampires

- this is the one that got a tv show and might have also been the first critrole campaign idek

- d. ragons? chromia something. dragons. i hope i haven’t been lied to about the dragons. i hope there are actually dragons in this. there’s like a chromium something with dragon symbols tho

mighty nein

from left to right:

- mollymauk! ...tealeaf? another taliesin pc. the trans people like this one. i don’t know what their pronouns are. but theyre slaying every time i see them at any time. no idea what class but maybe a spellcaster?

- ...beau? i know her exclusively through lesbian ship art so i know her name is beau something bc that’s the ship names but i don’t know if that’s short for something. monk? no clue. also no clue who plays her either. maybe marisha?

- i have seen this character but i do not know their name. or anything else about them

- oh this is the sad wizard boy caleb widogast. he’s gay for essek thelyss (or something. i didnt spell that right) who is a npc i think. yeah. sad wizard. every time i see him he’s just being a wizard and sad. the gays love him too but he’s more of a distraught otter than a sad twink. maybe he and percy should start a club tho. also i think he’s played by liam

- i KNOW this character’s name i think it starts with s but i can’t remember for the life of me. scriv? scrat? no thats the rat from ice age. possibly a menace? i think im getting them mixed up with someone else. they look cool as hell though

- jester!! laura pc i think perhaps. i want to get drunk with her and tell her about all of my problems. yeah. i dont know anything about her actually. beaujester exists tho i know that

- YASHA. CRUSH ME HOLY FUCK. sorry im normal ? her voice makes me a little crazy insane. ive seen a few clips of her. mostly gay shit with beau. uh she’s played by ashley and she could kick my ass very easily

oh my god there’s another photo

- i think there’s only one character different here and it’s caduceus clay fun fact i hated this mfer for really dumb shitty personal reasons for a while before deciding it was very stupid to blame a fictional character for interpersonal drama and now im fine with him. wait does mollymauk die or something. wait a second. no, wait, fuck—

- ALSO WHO’S THAT FUCKER IN THE BACKGROUND I JUST NOTICED THAT

anything else i know about this:

- yeah i got nothing. no idea about the lore or the plot or anything bc i pretty much exclusively see gay ship art of these pcs. love wins i support it

bells hells

from left to right, one more time:

- look my brain is just saying gertrude from dungeons & drag queens but obviously that’s incorrect. so i don’t know who this is

- or this! but she looks very pretty and i love the little... monkey... bird? pls tell me these two characters have some kind of wild opposites dynamic they look like they do

- LITTLE ROBOT GUY . fcg? fgc? i think it was the first one. uh. liam pc? ?????? i think he gets bitches

- orym...? i know one of these characters is named orym. and i think it’s this one. i also see gay fanart of him

- i don’t know who the guy underneath him is

- or the lady with the purple hair god i really don’t know shit about this campaign sorry

- ashton greymoore, taliesin pc, my friend luna loves this guy, he’s. rocks? he’s rocks. groovy.

- someone in this campaign is named like dorian or something and im guessing its this one bc idk who they are either

anything else i know about this:

- flying.......... ship?

- this is the ongoing one i think

thank you for coming to my ted talk, i can’t wait to look back at this in a few months and laugh my ass off. hope u enjoyed this mess

[mindovermuses]

Ok, I have an idea for how they can try to help Laudna.

Remember Jirana? The therapist who helped Keyleth with her grief? The sweet, older lady who lives in the giant frog in the shattered teeth?

What if Bells Hells just sort of... dropped Laudna off there for a while for some isolated, inpatient counseling? She can live as a bog witch for a bit until she's ready to be reintroduced into society again? A tiny, little psychiatric hold for the possessed, undead girl until she feels herself again?

Imogen has the staff and could visit her occasionally when Jirana says it's a good time for it. They can use the sending stones since Orym and Dorian are physically together again and should never separate again for any reason.

[burr-ell]

I was scrolling through some older shippy posts and I saw one that said something along the lines of “oh vex and keyleth definitely fuck when percys not around.” And I’m thinking vex wouldn’t cheat on percy with anyone let alone keyleth. also really don’t like when people say “oh when one day percy dies vex and keyleth would get together” that’s one is more recent I saw. And I know people want keyleth to move on, but why would she move one with her dead boyfriend’s twin sister, that seems really weird to me. Like, wouldn’t that just keep the grief alive? Would good would that do for either of them? And when percy does pass, I don’t think vex would just be like “hey keyleth my husband died wanna get together?” Anyway what’s your thoughts on this?

Honestly, the fanon for Vex/Keyleth suffers from a similar cadre of self insert fanfic issues as the fanon for Vax/Keyleth—a lot of people have projected themselves onto Keyleth, who gets watered down to an uber-powerful goddess-like figure whose only flaw is that she doesn't believe in herself and she can be both supported and ✨shown the ways of love✨ by a hot broody love interest who's so perfect and good and always there to gush over how great she is no matter what. Keyleth's anger and self-righteousness, Vax's possessiveness and recklessness (and genuine love for Gilmore), and/or Vex's attraction to darkness and clashing style of leadership are all completely ignored.

At the end of the day, every one of those types of posts is basically saying "well once Laura Bailey Character's beloved husband has died of old age and she's a free agent after ~70 years of marriage and bearing at least five of his children, then she can FINALLY be with Marisha Ray Character. What was her name? Kayleigh? Idk but Laura PC and Marisha PC should definitely fuck tho". And like, you must REALLY not like either Vex or Keyleth if you'd inflict them on each other for reasons indiscernible to people who pay attention to this show for longer than it takes to cherry-pick supercut clips. They would make each other miserable, for reasons you cited and others.

Also, in terms of getting with Keyleth when the human spouse dies: Kima's right there!

[romeoandjulietyouwish]

Chapter 3: Waltz of the Snowflakes (The Nutcracker, presented by the Emon Ballet Company)

TW: discussion of abusive relationships, references to child abuse

The apartment that Percy, Keyleth, and Cassandra share is incredibly small.

When Cassandra moved in, she was given the smallest bedroom. Previously, it was only used for storage. Keyleth's box of old pointe shoes is still hidden under her bed.

Cassandra’s bed takes up most of the bedroom. It’s shoved into the corner, piled high with the blankets. The window never seems to close all the way so there's always a cold draft. There’s just enough room on the floor for Cassandra to sit and do stretches.

The walls are bare save for an old picture of her and her parents, a tapestry of a forest that Keyleth gave her, and a dirty mirror. Old pointe shoes are shoved half under the bed. Ribbons and lace are all over. Cassandra blames Minxie, the cat is obsessed with any type of string. Her closet is mostly filled with leotards and skirts and old dance costumes rather than her normal clothes.

When she left the Briarwoods, it had been a sudden decision. She had been afraid of losing her nerve or them finding out. As a result, she had to leave most of her possessions behind. Not that there were many to begin with.

Since she arrived, Keyleth and Pike seem to have made it their life’s mission to decorate her room. They’ve presented her with everything from quilts to little animal figurines to books. Cassandra has never been able to figure out how to properly thank them.

Sitting on her bed, Cassandra taps her fingernails against her mug of tea. Minxie is curled up at her feet, purring up a storm at the gentle scratches Cassandra provides. Laid out in front of her is an open textbook, her pen keeping her place. Her notebook is on her lap. The page is filled with her nearly incomprehensible handwriting.

Despite the fact that she already has a career in ballet, Percy is forcing her to get a high school diploma. It’s ridiculous in her opinion, she hasn’t been in school in three years. The Briarwoods thought her time would be better spent rehearsing and dancing. But since she’s a few months shy of turning eighteen, it’s up to Percy as her guardian. And Percy decided that her little free time was worth spending on online high school. Though she made her protests due at first, she’s come to realize there’s no point.

In the kitchen, she can hear Keyleth listening to festive music as she bakes cookies for rehearsal the next day. The apartment is filled with a wonderful aroma. Cassandra has half a mind to abandon her homework and go join Keyleth.

Percy stayed late at the studio to rehearse with Vex, and Keyleth won’t tell on her for not doing her homework. Cassandra has almost talked herself into it when something catches the corner of her eye.

She turns to look and her eyes widen in surprise.

Outside the window, all she can see is flurries of fluffy snow. Through it, the streetlights look magical, shining between the snowflakes. Snow lands heavily on the roads and sidewalks and the cars parked on the street. Even though it's dark outside, it almost seems like the sky is glowing.

Cassandra leans forward, almost pressing her face to the freezing glass. The smile that crosses her face is almost childlike, filled with joy and wonder. For the first time this winter, it finally feels like Winter’s Crest is near.

It might be her imagination, but snow looks better here than anywhere in the world.

“Cassandra, did you see the snow?” Keyleth calls, just as excited as Cassandra.

“Yeah!” She shouts back.

Cassandra curls her legs to her chest, leaning against the window. Her smile is more reflective now.

She can almost imagine that she’s back in Whitestone. She's sitting in the penthouse as her mother and Julius sing carols. She can almost hear herself begging Vesper or Percy to go outside with her and play in the snow.

Another memory tickles the edge of her mind, though not a happy one. Freezing cold snow landed on her shoulders as she heard the news. Percy’s hand was like ice in hers. Her tears turned to icicles on her cheeks.

The edges of her mind start to curl in on itself, like the burning edges of paper. Burning, burning, smoke and ash. Fouettee after fouettee, the world spinning around her. Never good enough. Blood and bruises and a stinging cheekbone. Smile, Cassandra, you need to keep smiling-

Minxie meows softly, stretching towards Cassandra. The cat headbutts her stomach, demanding her attention firmly. Taking a breath, Cassandra smiles and scratches the cat’s head.

continue reading on ao3 <3

tip jar

[vaxxy-after-dark]

Thinking about a world where Vax met the Briarwoods before he met Percy, maybe while on a job for The Clasp, and they had a one night stand with him.

They were surprisingly sweet and gentle, but also clearly supernatural and possessive.

Maybe they even tried to convince Vax to abandon his sister and The Clasp to join them? But Vax refused to.

He enjoyed the night he had spent with them, but he could never betray his sister like that.

And The Clasp would hunt him down if he just vanished, that and their deal with Vax would become void and put Vex in incredible danger. Vax just can't let that happen to her.

So they go their separate ways, but Vax never forgets them.

He often dreams of them, even years later, and he misses the way that they touched him.

The way that they spoke to him, whispering praise into his ear as they pulled moans from his mouth with little effort.

The threat of being bitten, sharp kisses teasing his sensitive skin as he squirmed.

He sometimes hopes to run into them randomly again, to steal another night with them.

.

.

.

Then Percy tells him and the others all about the people who came to visit Whitestone and launched a full-scale uprising.

He recognises the sketches Percy pulls out, the goatee and the fancy necklace and the smiles and the eyes and the poses and the bloody teeth.

He has a panic attack realising who they are, his mind reeling in horror over the thought that he not only slept with these people but had even - for just a second - considered running away with them to absolutely fuck knows where, probably the kingdom they took over.

He's utterly horrified.

When the others finally get Vax to calm down and breathe again, he shakily recalls how it was he had met the couple.

Percy is quiet for a moment, for too long a moment perhaps, before he apologises to Vax.

From then onwards, the two have clear tension between them that will only grow.

.

.

.

When the Briarwoods arrive for dinner in Emon and Vax sneaks off to their room to gather any evidence he can find, luck would have it that they end up leaving dinner early and catch poor Vax red handed in the act.

They immediately recognise him, Vax freezing in fear.

Delilah mourns the now-lost 'innocence' of their past affair, while her husband bemoans killing someone so 'sweet'.

Vax begs for mercy, vowing to betray Percy if they let him live - he would never, they know it as well as he does, but they couple give pause and listen.

"And, pray, why should we trust you, little thief?" Delilah would ask, smirking as she toys with emeralds draped from her neck as she looks Vax up and down.

Sylas would chuckle, "We have no ire against you, but your little friend is a pain in the neck that we must get rid of."

Then, scared and trying to get out of this alive, Vax proposes a redo of their past encounter.

The Briarwoods accept maybe a little too quickly for his liking.

.

.

.

When it's over and Vax leaves, alive and with some evidence, he can't help but hate himself.

He already kind of did before this, but he definitely does now and it burns him deep inside.

How he ever looks Percy in the eye again? He doesn't know.

Though he's pretty sure that Percy knows, if the random glares Percy throws his way for the next few weeks is anything to go by - Vax doesn't blame him one bit, he would do it too.

.

.

.

By the time the Briarwoods are dead, the tension between Vax and Percy is so thick you could cut it with one of Vax's knives.

Vax is, understandably, scared of the gunslinger at this point.

The man had been harbouring a demon inside of him all of this time and had almost killed all of them when said demon was unhappy about Percy failing to be the one to kill the Briarwoods in the end.

The fact that Vax had been momentarily charmed by the Briarwoods and forced to fight his friends hadn't helped things, now Percy can't look at Vax with glaring or growling.

Vax really doesn't blame him, but it makes him feel small.

His sister and Keyleth both try to help them sort out their feelings, but it just leads to Percy exploding in anger.

He accuses Vax of so many things, Vax feels dizzy and has another panic attack in reply.

It ends with Vex slapping Percy as Keyleth sits Vax down and helps him do some breathing exercises to calm down again.

But the damage is done.

After that night, the twins pack their things and leave once everyone else has gone to bed.

Vax never truly heals from his experiences, but Vex is there to look after him from now on.

[greenteaandtattoos]

I feel like.... we've had a bit of a switch-a-roo with Imogen and Laudna.

I love their relationship, I do, but there's something to be said about Laudna being so protective of and needing Imogen so severely that she assumes that Ashton, one of her closest friends, would kidnap her.

I think what needs to be said is that Laudna is, understandably, extremely attached to Imogen after all that's happened, but I feel that it's crossed into something that they need to talk about.

Because it's not something healthy. It's codependency. And maybe that tropes does it for some people, but it's not for me. And I hope that it's a plot line, because this paranoia of not being by Imogen's side as much as possible, of not knowing where Imogen is even for a moment, could end up as something worse.

This time she only accused Ashton. What about next time? Will this become a constant fear, that she cannot even trust her own friends, who fought tooth and nail, to bring her back? Will she take action next time something like this happens?

It has to be addressed. And it is a great parallel to Imogen struggling to resist Ruidus' call; but the reason I called it a switch-a-roo is because Imogen used to be, again, understandably, the codependent one.

Think back to the beginning of the campaign; hell, even 30 episodes ago. Imogen's past caused her to latch onto Laudna for comfort and safety and Laudna was her confidence.

Laudna wasn't just weird like her, she was also ostracized and abused for it, too. And they saved each other. They are each other's savior, salvation, home, and tether. Weirdos stick together, after all. That's why Bell's Hells became their home, too.

And I think we can pinpoint this shift down to their separation after the Apogee Solstice and Ludinus' ritual. While their separation after Bell's Hells got thrown to different sides of the world really helped Imogen become more independent, more confident, the reverse happened with Laudna.

And you know, I can see why! Anyone could could, really. Their experiences were vastly different; one was more positive than the other, and it changed them accordingly. Changed them all.

And now, while Imogen becams more independent during the separation, she also hit home that dealing with her Ruidus issues by herself was detrimental to everyone. She was helped by the others, helped to not just resist by to control it, even when they were wary of her (FCG) or was prepared to kill her if she gave in (Fearne).

But Laudna? She didn't get that lesson, that help. She got beaten down and battered until she didn't just tap into the powers she had spent so long resisting; she was encouraged to by the people who previously helped her fight against it.

Of course, Delilah's influence most certainly does not help; in fact, I could pretty confidently say that Delilah is contributing to Laudna's paranoia.

While Imogen successfully summoned the Reilora, confident that she was backed by the others, Laudna tried to contact Delilah alone, deliberately stepping away from the others.

And this is probably because she wants to protect them! She doesn't want them tangled in that mess again; but she needs Delilah, or rather, she needs Delilah's power and confidence, and she's confident that she could handle her on her own. After all, things have been going great since Bell's Hells reunited, more or less.

Laudna and Imogen admitted their feelings for each other and kissed; they saved Keyleth, they saved a bunch of Keyleth's people; they got time to relax and have fun, even just for one day after what seems like endless panic and struggle up until then. And until they must return to the fight and confront the inevitable before them.

But Delilah's response to Laudna's summons, it was when Imogen had returned to the others, leaving Laudna to herself. It was after they had contemplated Laudna perhaps speaking to the Moonweaver (Big moon, little moon). And it was possessive.

And I think this is a beautiful plot line for them to explore. While I don't like the codependency trope, I do enjoy when couples suddenly realize that their relationship has cracked, that things aren't as perfect as they thought, and they need to fix it - or else.

[pippastrelle]

Bulletpoint liveblog of C3E91 let's go!

First half: Bell's Hells

Gotta love Marisha as Sam's protege. What's the opposite of phallic? Somehow they made a hotdog costume that. And now back to sadness…

God, Orym's immediately in soldier mode.

Where are they going to go from here? If they're so in the open. Are they going to go down the Bloody Bridge or escape through Issylra? I mean, makes sense that Liliana doesn't want to tip them off, but still a woman convinced that working for Ludinus will work out somehow…

Possessing a human to escape the divine gate is pretty smart. Yeah, right, that's probably what Ruidusborn were from the start (if Predathos is sentient enough to plan).

I know she's rightly frustrating to others but Liliana is so interesting. I love characters getting so torn between morality and feeling like enduring sacrifice must be worth it.

I do like that she's still pro-god-eater too.

Oh??? Commune with Predathos??

Aw, but that's what Predathos would want her to think. That thing's will be fine for her. Anyone getting some Asmodeus vibes?

Apathy being no better than distain is something the Bells Hells know about the world. They weren't targeted. They were pawns.

"Angry at those who put it there"…. But Ruidus is a piece of Exandria. Would it be mad at that, I wonder? I'm genuinely curious whether Predathos would actively want to destroy Exandria or whether it will be mere collateral.

Oof. Yep. Don't tell Liliana about the back door.

God I love Liliana. Still got that love for Imogen. Still got that hate and defensiveness around the gods. I see Imogen genuinely reaching out to her mum, but also being a little passive-aggressive with it to try convince her. Clever.

Haha Chetney's passive-aggressive interogations are my favourite. Makes sense that Ludinus and the Weave Mind are separate entities with separate goals, even if they're using each other. Curious how the Weave Mind will deal with Predathos.

"Be the… mother hen to them." God I love Liliana. She's very intelligent in using herself to get her way. Thank you Laura Bailey for fascinating mother PCs.

Evoroa knows where Ludinus is??

Blunt polite Orym.

Genuinely, Liliana is more swayed by Predathos itself than I realised. Looking like a three-way gambit. Who -- Ludinus, Predathos, Weave Mind -- will win?

Cold, intimidating Ashton and cold, intimidating Liliana. Revealing.

This conversation with Liliana is everything I wanted.

And this is great with Imogen. They can use Liliana. It's not really about morality anymore.

Good question, Fearne, about the daughter abandonment. Oh. Ludinus visited her directly? I thought it was Otohan first. I mean, this is the sad thing. Liliana was vulnerable and swept into a cult, and we see how seemingly impossible it is to escape over a decade of belonging there. Who knows? Any one of the Bell's Hells could have been her.

Good, Laudna, keeping you guys going.

Aaaaaaah, Imogen. Tackling Liliana's priorities.

I like that Evoroa's coming with them. That'll be fun for Exandria.

I feel like we can never stop complimenting Matt's descriptions.

XD I mean, I'd panic too, being teleported into the middle of an encampment. Convenient though.

….Love the constant reminders of how INSANELY powerful Liliana is.

GOD, LILIANA, THAT BETTER BE A "I WISH I COULD GO WITH YOU" SORRY!

….Isn't the base of the Malleus Key super guarded too?

Time for another TPK!

Chetney/Travis is so smart. Using Otohan's stuff to pose as her underlings.

XD Ashton's wonderful CHA.

Laura might've rolled not great.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO BAD DECEPTION CHECK!

Are they fucked?

Ooh maybe Keyleth's people attacked again?

Diolch byth (Welsh) -- thank god -- for Orym's insane passive perception.

FUCK they haven't even been able to talk about FCG yet.

Telepathy is so uncanny. So sick.

(HA! I've always wondered what it's like to wear a big costume like that. I've worn a unicorn head before but full body?)

What does Phantasmal Force do? OOOH the mind illusion thing! Pleeeeeeeease work.

I am deeply villainsexual. Intimidating Imogen makes me so gay.

GO LAUDNA! SUCCESS! Christ, they have no resources. What would have happened if they failed there?

HA! Is Ryn statue still there? Just casually drag her out, y'know.

The Ruby Vanguard is having a costume party, guys, don't judge the hotdogs.

Can they teleport still or are they going to have to find somewhere to long rest?

God, the graveyard of past battles around the Malleus Key is such great worldbuilding. Oh, god, even pikes and trophies? T_T Looking out for the Changebringer.

Keyleth's going to have a hell of a report after this. Do they remember they sent her lot to Issylra? Thank god Sending works again. XD Well, "works". User error aside.

HA! True spouse goals. Swapping Nat 1s.

T_T Marisha bringing the fan. I'm still so curious when/if Sam will reappear.

Props to Ashley reminding them about the exhaustion.

Fuck. FCG. I'm still so sad. Brilliant character. How do you even begin to process that? How can they reconcile this with FCG's martyr complex? These characters don't know about hit points. Who knows if they could've taken her down? Oh why does it feel better to be killed by Otohan than for him to go down killing her….

Imogen reckoning with Liliana vs. her mum. Even if Liliana doesn't support Ludinus, the question is how much that'll tangibly matter.

A lot of these guys have to question "what they were designed for". A lot of these guys were "made" for someone else. Aw, Laudna apologising for it: her and Delilah. And yeah, it's why Liliana is also a great, tragic reflection of the Bell's Hells.

Ashton's fantastic. Orym's fantastic. Chetney's fantastic. Fuck, the Ruby Vanguard have fucked them all up.

Awwwww Laudna and Imogen's little "I love you"s. The Bell's Hells are so special to me.

Chetney piecing things together around Aeor. I am curious how much Ludinus is interfacing with aeormatons, as opposed to other Aeor anti-god technologies.

Oh, Christ, Evoroa's been here the whole time. Bless. I wonder how crazy it must be on Exandria for her. Aw, love Chetney welcoming her. In his own way.

Haha "It's had some work done". Accurate, Ashton.

Are they going to go to Aeor?? Are they going to chase Ludinus there??

Evoroa's fun. Cool, so Predathos is in a glass and adamantine prison? I'm surprised it's in any way physical.

Yes. Sicc something and anything on Ludinus! I adore their energy. How does anyone survive contact with the BH?

THE MONSTER IS GOING TO BE BOLO FROM AEOR!

(Goddammit Twitch. Is anyone else getting a glitch when windows overtop of it make it skip forward?)

"STOP INTERRUPTING THE STORY!" Lore mood XD

Laura's face during Evoroa's story. Also mood.

I'm curious if Ludinus still plans to use or could use Fearne.

FRIDA TT_TT YUP EVERYTHING'S ALWAYS PAINFUL ALWAYS. Are they going to get a message from Christian?

Finally, Chetney checking up on Evoroa.

"I have a passive perception of 33. I heard it all." Is that higher than Vex'ahlia?

……………………How many bodies do they have in the hole at this point?

I can't imagine how physically shitty Ashton must feel on top of everything.

Laudna and Ashton have always had a great dynamic. Brings out the bluntness and wisdom(?) in both of them. Christ, Evoroa's going through it too.

Imogen and Orym have always had a great dynamic too. Both trying to keep things running, especially with each other. And the fact that Orym's not even out for revenge has always been fascinating… but it's still about the massive weight of Will and Derrig's deaths on his shoulders. He's a little guy, both literally and metaphorically, and god he's had to deal with so much, and the more they deal with, the more responsibility they get. I really like that, despite their potential conflicts, Imogen and Orym have always just wanted to get along. It's what I love about the Bell's Hells. They're genuinely broken but they genuinely love each other but they're genuinely broken but they genuinely love each other.

DORIAN SENDING! Was it just that he was asleep last time? I hope so. God, Orym/Liam's voice breaking breaks me.

[onyxbird]

No Strings Attached

Summary: Jarett may not usually fight alongside his employers, but he knows them well enough to know when something just isn't right. They do this all the time, so surely they have some kind of strategy for if their cleric gets possessed, right? Pike has an unusual strategy for being in two places at once, and she trusts her friends implicitly. If only they had that much trust in themselves. Also on AO3.

Jarett darted behind the piece of broken wall Vax was already huddled behind and dropped to a crouch next to him. Every line of Vax's form screamed stress.

“Vax. Not to complicate this already terrible situation, but…” Jarett grimaced, trying to figure out the right way to explain.

“Yes?” said Vax, distractedly. He stared apprehensively at the spot where Percy had just unloaded several shots into a wyvern, but his eyes did not track its movement, as if he was lost in his own thoughts. A flash briefly illuminated the battlefield, its radiance casting Vax and Jarett into even deeper shadow, as Pike fired off a spell and sprinted for the next piece of cover as fast as her short legs could carry her.

Jarett hesitated, wondering if he was making a mistake.

Vax glanced over at him, eyes focused again. “Yes, Jarett, what is it?”

“I think there is something wrong with Pike,” he blurted. “She is acting strangely; she does not sound like herself. We must be on guard. If something is possessing Pike and pretending to be her, this could be a trap for us all.”

Vax closed his eyes and dropped his forehead against the stone in front of him with a soft thud. “Fuck!”

A slight scrape of stone on the other side of the wall made his head snap up again. He exploded to his feet, flinging three daggers in quick succession to bury themselves to the hilt into the monster's head. It let out an ear-splitting screech, clawing at the dagger buried in one eye, and Vax bolted, grabbing Jarett by the back of his collar and dragging him along.

Jarett stumbled scrambling to keep up, until they reached a larger, intact wall and Vax crammed them both into a shadowed alcove, Jarett first.

Jarett eyed him warily. “You do not seem as surprised as I expected.”

Vax cautiously peeked out of the alcove, checking for enemies, and at first Jarett thought he wasn't going to answer. Then, satisfied with his check, he spun back to Jarett and leaned in close.

“She's not here.”

“What?”

“Pike's not here,” hissed Vax. “Well, her body is, but—She's checking out that tunnel while we keep them busy, looking for any way to collapse that contraption and stop it. Astral projection. We were going to leave her safely behind, but she insisted we needed a healer and that they might get suspicious if she wasn't fighting with us.”

Jarett blinked at him, stunned. “But—” The distinctive warmth of one of Pike's group healing spells washed over him, and a cut over Vax's eye closed up. “—then who is that?!”

“Vex,” said Vax, miserably. “And me. Pike figured out a way to let us basically puppet her around while her conscious focus is elsewhere.”

The boom of falling rocks from the middle of the battlefield made Vax flinch, and he frantically grabbed for his earring. “Vex, did you get her—?” Jarett couldn't hear the answer, but Vax's relieved sag against the wall made it clear enough: Pike had escaped the impact.

They both poked their heads out of the alcove, scanning for enemies. Vax's daggers combined with Jarett's crossbow sent one of the still-flying wyverns crashing into the dirt. It didn't move again, and its rider tumbled across the ground.

Jarett ducked back into cover. “Why you?” Of all the questions spinning through his head, it was probably the one that mattered the least.

Vax rattled off the answer without hesitation—clearly, it had been a point of discussion. “Keyleth and Percy don't get on with gods; Grog knows less about magic than even I do and spends most of battle in a rage, and Scanlan—”

“Is Scanlan. Say no more.”

“Yeah, well—Shit!” A flash of panic crossed Vax's face as his eyes unfocused once more. A moment later he blinked and muttered, clearly not to Jarett, “Yeah, mostly got her out. Still got clipped by part of the swing, though. Should she heal herself or try to hit the fucker before he can get another swing in?”

…

Pike skidded to a stop next to Jarett, grabbing his arm and healing him. “Hey. More guys coming up from the south. Can you get to that gate and get it barred so we don't have more of these fuckers to deal with? Vex and Grog will cover you.”

A shower of arrows from above peppered their nearest enemies as the shadow of Vex on her broom swept over.

“Uh, yes. Yes, of course.” Jarett looked down into Pike's blue eyes. Vax's accent and manner of speaking coming from Pike's mouth in Pike's voice was somehow even more unsettling than the twins' imperfect imitation of her own. From the corner of his eye, he could see Vax clinging for dear life to the back of the wyvern vigorously attempting to buck him and his daggers off.

“Thank you, darling,” said Pike, now with Vex's forced brightness. “Clear path between the pillar to your left and the rider impaled on a tree. Hurry.”

Pike darted back behind a wall next to another guard and reached for her earring, her tone sliding smoothly back into a bubbly approximation of Pike's usual voice. “OK, guys, who else needs healing?”

Grog, currently smoldering and with a worryingly large hole in one thigh, said “No rush, Pikey, but I could use a little smidge when you have a chance…”

“Sure thing, buddy!” chirped Pike.

…

There were no wyverns left, and most of their grounded riders were down, too, when there was a distant boom and a slight shudder in the ground. Friends and enemies alike reacted in apprehension, trying to place what had happened and whether it boded good or ill.

“Oh, wow,” said Pike suddenly. “That's—Ooo, gosh, you guys have been having a time of it, haven't you? How's everyone doing?”

Multiple heads whipped around to look at her. She doubled over, one hand pressed to a wound in her side from a claw that had slipped between armor plates.

“Pike!” A swirl of black feathers plummeted from the air like a meteor to land beside her. “Oh gods, are you all right? I'm so sorry. I—”

Pike gently batted away his extended hand before it could touch her shoulder. “I'm fine; I'm OK. Save it for someone in worse shape.” She beamed up at him despite tears of pain welling up in the corners of her eyes. “You did great.”

“You're hurt.”

“No worse than normal for our fights; it just caught me by surprise just now. And we did it!”

Vax crumpled to his knees and wrapped her in a hug with arms and wings alike.

A small gauntleted hand poked out through feathers to pat vaguely in the vicinity of Vax's back. “Hey… hey, it's OK. You guys did great. I knew you would. I knew I'd be fine.”

Vax huffed a laugh that sounded more like a sob. “I didn't. Don't ever do that to us again. I thought we were going to get you killed.”

[utilitycaster]

on Laura's characters

This has been rattling around for a bit, and I've notably been pretty critical of how Laura's characters have been treated by the fandom, and I think a lot of the discussion of Imogen, overlaid with the discussion of Vex during TLOVM, has put it into to focus for me:

Laura plays characters that allow her to explore a lot of very selfish or self-serving behaviors, as well as the dark side of selflessness. This is, in my opinion, one of the very last lines people are squeamish about female characters crossing - and it's across the board, too. People who are comfortable with supporting women's wrongs often balk at supporting women's uglier, smaller choices, particularly for women who are otherwise portrayed as heroic. Sacrifice is still seen in a lot of women-centric media as the greatest gesture, and works where women are unabashedly self-serving are harder to find. It's why Delilah's nonstop villainy in the name of love gets a pass, but few people look head on at Vex's petty cruelty to Keyleth.

Vex is an incredibly selfish person. She is also unique among Laura's characters in realizing this about herself, and not liking it very much. It's mostly sympathetic - what are D&D shopkeepers but opportunities to haggle and ask weird questions, and Vex's anxieties about money are very justified - but less so when it comes to her possessiveness of Vax. It's very understandable that she feels protective and possessive towards him, but that doesn't negate her unkindness. Vex pressures Keyleth to the point of tears at least once (granted, it was a difficult day for everyone) and pushes at Vax as well, to the point where it causes a small but definite rift between them. At worst, this selfishness - this desire to have Vax for herself - is turned into jealousy of Vax, rather than of Keyleth, so that it can be reframed as in the name of romantic love (which is considered a more acceptable form of selfishness than familial, but that's for someone far wiser than I to unpack). However, even when that doesn't happen, it's often glossed over. The same is true for Vex stealing the broom. It's fine if you disagree with the alignment change decision - I don't particularly care for it - and Laura certainly didn't deserve hate for taking the item of a character who would never show up again. But it is a purely self-centered choice. She wants to fly, she sees a way to do so, and she takes the broom of an ally and lies about it. There's no in-game justification for this being anything but selfish, and it says a lot about her character that she does it, but the things it says are messy and difficult. I don't think you can appreciate Vex's full arc without understanding that it is her pushing past this selfishness. Holding grudges is perhaps the most selfish act of all, of keeping all that hurt to yourself and never granting forgiveness. "Sineath" is about a lot of things, but that is one of them.

Jester is much less selfish when it comes to material things, but she is, especially early on, frequently inconsiderate or insensitive. It comes from a place that is devoid of malice, but definitely does not think through the ramifications for others. This shows up when she's dismissive of sums of money that are immense for Caleb but mean little to her, or her willingness to deface temples despite the risk. However, Jester is, far more, an exploration of the darker side of selflessness. What does someone feel, when they think they must constantly be a light to those around them? Where do their frustrations come out? We see that it weighs on Jester in how difficult she finds it to balance the responsibilities and demands of Artagan during Traveler Con, and again, when she becomes aware of the potential self-sacrifice needed in Eiselcross. Vex had to learn to let go of Vax and her grudges and her need for approval from people who would never give it; Jester has to learn to start taking and putting herself first.

And then there's Imogen. Vex and Jester's selfishness was tempered by their extroversion and empathy, which at times makes it easier to ignore. While they may have self-interests, and struggle to regulate what they do or do not give (in different directions), they do, in the end, like people on the whole. Imogen does not. It's understandable, given the stress they put on her, but her powers and her judgement mean that she is a lot less able to create boundaries between them and herself. As a result, when she lets herself become closer to people, she doesn't recognize when treating her friends as a sounding board might be hurtful or insulting to them. This comes out notably in her repeated consideration of the Vanguard's position. It's fascinating because it can be seen as her trying to understand other people, especially her mother and the members of the Vanguard we've seen. There is legitimate hurt behind Tuldus, Ludinus, Liliana, and Otohan's motivations; but the person to talk over this with is not Orym, whose husband and father-in-law were innocent collateral damage to these plans, nor Laudna, who was murdered by Otohan.

I think people really shy away from the dark sides of all of these characters. People tend to focus on Vex's competence, Jester's role as the heart and light in the party, and Imogen's trauma, without realizing these are all perpetuated by that exploration of selfishness and selflessness. But given how central this is to all three of these characters, I think this is also why the fandom is often so quick to turn on them - they do not want to face how much Vex cares about her father and Vax, or how what Jester needs is not unconditional support nor concrete instructions, but honesty and a willingness to listen, or that Imogen has the capacity to do great harm to those she loves and does so, but these are all major parts of those characters. Ignoring that is how people believe Vex's arc is underserved; it's not, but you can only see it if you are willing to admit who she is at the start. It's easier for them to consider a Jester frozen in the early part of the campaign than the far more emotionally mature woman she becomes because of what it says about selfishness.

Imogen is interesting, because I've actually seen far more arguments of her as a complete monster than those absolving her. If Imogen becomes more unsure at Orym's words and needs a complete lack of judgment to come around that makes her truly heartless and unfeeling, rather than someone who has an understandably if unintentionally cold and strange way of understanding thoughts vs. words. vs. actions. I suspect this is because both Imogen herself, and the fandom, have less of a grasp on Imogen as her own person. And, to be fair, this is true of the fandom's perception of Vex and Jester; they just had better in-universe senses of self. But I'm interested in seeing if the perception of Imogen shifts back to how it was prior to episode 48, which is a more consistent discomfort with the way she puts herself first.

[essayofthoughts]

Hi! Do you think Vesh ever “re-emerged” after her and Kash’s wedding? Do you think Kash ever had to confront her as an adult? Thanks!

Well, if it happens, it doesn't happen in the time between Kash's 15th and when we meet him - he explicitly says he hasn't seen her since he tried to kill her at his fifteenth, so certainly by then she hasn't re-emerged. Given that she didn't re-emerge when Kash revivified Vex it's possible his attacking her banished her to some degree - I don't think he actually killed her, given he still has divine magic (and a few other things - I'll get into those). While in other settings belief in a domain can confer divine magic, the Calamity's k'nauthi kind of implies that divine magic usually comes from a divine patron, not belief?

Additionally, per the Campaign Guides, Vesh is purportedly protective of her chosen mates, of which Kash is one, and yet Kash almost died and was saved by Zahra, which suggests she's not active in his life and that nor is she actively protecting him. Additionally, the Campaign Guides say that Vesh goes after and attacks chosen mates who are insufficiently loyal - she's jealous and possessive... and yet we know Kash and Zahra are together for roughly a year on-stream, and even are expecting kid(s)!

This honestly all suggests to me that whatever Kash did when he attacked her when he as fifteen may have banished her or bound her away - only backed up by what he says to Keyleth after resurrecting Vex: "I hope the barrier that was sealed has remained sealed."

So! If Vesh is able to re-emerge it'd likely be after what we see of the stream and... it's possible? We know from the Campaign Guide that there are other cultists of Vesh, and it's perfectly possible they're finding and raising chosen of Vesh with those yellow-gold eyes, and attempting to invoke the Sting of a Hundred. And, if Vesh doesn't answer, presumably because of whatever binding or barrier fifteen year old Kash (HE WAS FIFTEEN) managed to set they may well endeavour to break it - and Vesh certainly seems the vengeful type, based on what we have in the Campaign Guides and what Kash says.

I would not be at all surprised if, if she did escape Kash's bindings, she'd go after him. Something I bounced around when my friends watching C3 mentioned the apogee and everything going sideways is - that'd be a great trigger for Vesh getting loose if she hasn't already. We know that what's happened then has broken a lot of divine bindings.

However... Kash is quite genuinely, physically, mentally, and magically stronger than he was when he was fifteen. He has levelled up, yes, but he has also trained to be better at fighting (per Friedle's backstory for him, he was a soldier for a time!), become less afraid of using Vesh's magic, and most importantly, thanks to Zahra, has done a lot of healing from the trauma Vesh wrought on him. And, also, he has friends - allies. Even if all of Vox Machina, Keyleth especially, are busy with other things, he has Zahra, who has a powerful otherworldly patron of her own, and, notably, he and Zahra stood up to and survived a newly ascended god, when they went to assist Vox Machina against Vecna. They have faced worse than Vesh.

While I don't think it'd be fun if Vesh went after Kash, I do think they'd have significantly better odds than Kash might fear. Even if Vesh were to deny Kash her magic, he has legitimate fighting skill and also Zahra on his side.

Plus, I'm kind of inclined to believe that the Sting is a kind of... irrevocable binding. If Vesh could have denied Kash her magic for attacking her or when he was attacking her, I think she would have! But she didn't - he still has magic, and magic distinctly from her (remember, him calling on her magic lights up the scars he and she inflicted on his arm). So... I don't know that Vesh could keep Kash from using her magic, given the Sting. (I imagine this is also why she kills unfaithful chosen - she wouldn't want her magic, given irrevocably, to be wastefully used.)

So... I don't think Kash has had to fight Vesh again by the time we see him and I don't think he's likely to for some time! It is possible, however, that either due to the efforts of her cultists or things like the apogee solstice, she could get free and go after Kash at some point post-stream. And in that case...

If Vesh did go after Kash, she'd probably be out for more than blood - she'd be out for his head.

[asexxxualerotica]

Erotic Wishlist, Keyleth 2E: Keyleth has stolen Omega away from Greystone Keep, and is desperately trying to get her beloved Tiefling to make her a mother, before his jealous succubus patron finds the two.

This was definitely not the diplomatic venture Keyleth had claimed it was, taking Omega along as her personal security detail. For one thing, she had teleported the both of them into the middle of some random forest rather than the very heart of Vasselheim—for another, there was not a single living soul for miles, let alone any other foreign dignitaries—and perhaps most damning of all, she'd immediately immediately launched herself at him with a single, desperate plea.

"Breed me~! Now~!!"

And—well, how could he say no to a request like that?

He couldn't—or, at least, his lusty lover wouldn't let him, immediately shoving him down into the soft loam and moss of the forest floor and pouncing on him like a feral bitch in heat. She'd barely managed to yank—more like rip—the clothes from off both hers and his forms, a lingering remnant of her dress still bunched around her midsection as she desperately bounced up and down again and again, eagerly impaling herself on his thick, throbbing cock.

"Gods~ desperate, aren't ya~?" the tiefling groaned in mock admonishment—he couldn't even place his hands on her, her hips moving too fast and too rough for him—they found themselves instead tangled in the roots and ferns around him, grounding himself in a very literal way as he let the archdruid ride him like a beast possessed.

"So much~" was Keyleth's breathy reply, panting it out as she only seemed to bounce quicker. "Your patron has been hogging you to herself for too long~ it's time she made room for someone else in your relationship~ and I'm going to make sure you know exactly who that someone is going to be~"

"You won't hear me complaining~" Omega simply chuckled in reply, laying back with a pleasant grin as he watched her gorgeous form bounce up and down his thick, throbbing cock.

[ogdoadfates]

Something in the water AU

Yup here we go! tbh this is one I’m really excited to work on. 

Vex and Vax are royalty and commonly sneak out of their father’s castle and skip their classes.

Grog has a history that Willhand has even withheld from telling Pike about.

Percy after escaping the Briarwoods made a deal with the demon Orthax, unfortunately Orthax tricked him and he’s now slowly turning into a demon, him and Keyleth are currently traveling around trying to find a cure or a holy person who can help him without trying to kill him as soon as they find out.

Syngorn and a lot of other kingdoms see Druidic magic as tainted/feral magic and therefore outlawed it, anyone known to possess said magic is to be hunted down and executed.

Keyleth and her family had lived out in the wilderness outside of most kingdoms prying eyes, but sadly at a young age Keyleth’s mother went missing. Korrin having to break the sad news to Keyleth she most likely won’t ever see her mom again since she had been getting them supplies from a place that outlawed Druids. This does cause the two to have to move a bit closer to the kingdoms and once Keyleth was a bit older and discovered she herself had druidic magic she decided to flee due to her not being able to control it.

Druidic magic being nature based goes through a weird puberty like state which can be even worse if no one is there to help you through it. One day you can be in complete control the next you're either leaving a trail of flowers growing from your footsteps or acquired traits from an animal and/or elemental (antlers, claws, ect) Druids are also very rare due to them being hunted to almost extinction.

Keyleth and Percy found each other when they were running away from a kingdoms guards, discovering that they are both being hunted and discriminate for something out of their control they chose to stick together, each of them helping the other when they are having flare ups.

Percy and Keyleth work odd jobs here and there on their travels to make sure they have some spending money.

Keyleth will sometimes turn into a dog and walk with Percy around towns and such to help him hide by making it seem like the dogs are growling at her and not Percy.

The lands surrounding the majority of the kingdoms have been slowing dying, making crop yields lessen and lessen. Even the water in some places is turning undrinkable.

Pike has been receiving blurry, mysterious and confusing visions for years and they only start to get stranger when Percy and Keyleth get to the town she lives in, growing even more when the entire group finally meets up and becomes friends.

Scanlan’s mother was killed after being falsely accused of being a druid.

Half elves aren’t the most liked race.

Scanlan performs in the local bars on the regular.

Scanlan met Pike and Grog when he was sleeping in a temple to sarenra.

Vex and Vax though their existence is known to the public no ones really seen them, making them able to perfectly blend into the common crowd when they go on their nightly escapades.

Vex and Percy hit it off greatly when they first meet which scares the both of them.

Though he wishes he could be loudder about it, if Scanlan knows he can get away with saying it he’ll rant about how much he hates the laws against druids and how anyone falsely accused can be killed.

Grog knows how to fight due to growing up within a group of mercenaries.

The twins to some extent know how to fight either due to teachings or needing to know how to due to them sneaking around during the night where it’s more likely to have criminals walking about looking for targets.

Pike’s always had some divine magic but as things happen it gets stronger and stronger.

Vax becomes entranced with Keyleth upon their first meeting.

Vax at some point starts to get visions of his own.

When Vax finds both Keyleth and Vex gravely injured and on the brink of death is when he becomes the Raven Queen’s champion. 

Trinket is Vex’s horse and Simon is Vax’s.

Percy by all accounts is royalty. (because no duh)

[littlebosslady7]

Chapters: 3/6 Fandom: Critical Role (Web Series), The Legend of Vox Machina (Cartoon) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Percival "Percy" Fredrickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III/Vex'ahlia, Scanlan Shorthalt/Pike Trickfoot, Zahra Hydris/Kashaw Vesh Characters: Percival "Percy" Fredrickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III, Vex'ahlia (Critical Role), Vesper Elaina de Rolo | Percy and Vex'ahlia's Child, Cassandra de Rolo, Wolfe Kristoff de Rolo, Grog Strongjaw, Leona Pike de Rolo, Pike Trickfoot, Scanlan Shorthalt, Vax'ildan Frederick de Rolo, Keyleth (Critical Role), Vax'ildan (Critical Role), Gwendolyn Zahra Melanie Von Musel de Rolo, Zahra Hydris, Kashaw Vesh, Deanna Leimert, Wilhand'ildan Shorthalt, Juniper Shorthalt, Velora Vessar Additional Tags: Fluff, Domestic Fluff, Family Feels, Temporary Character Death, Light Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Humor, Minor Original Character(s), Lifespan Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Fluff and Humor, Spoilers for Campaign 3 (Critical Role), Minor Spoilers Series: Part 36 of D's Critical Role Stories Chapter Summary: Percy decided to hang up the Plague Doctor Mask in his office at Castle Whitestone. He did so with Vex and Vesper at his side. The de Rolos rediscovered how places and things could take on different meanings over time.

For @percahliaweek Day 3- Mask

Excerpt:

Vex took two long strides over to her husband. Her eyes scanned over him from head to toe. Nothing seemed amiss, though his white beard was a tad scragglier in these later seasonal months. “Percival, darling, how are you?” He shrugged, brow crinkled at her odd immediate concern, “Fine. What has you so worried, Vex’ahlia?” She stood up on her tip toes and asked in a whisper only audible to him, “It’s just the reveal of that horrid mask that gave me quite a fright. Does a demon have possession of you again? Orthax or-or Ipkesh?” Gods, her husband had a wretched penchant for making deals with creepy dwellers in numerous levels of the Hells. Percy vowed, “The sole beings, who are allowed to have possession of my heart and soul are your and our children, Wife. I swear to you.”